Vintage cars rev up the crowds on Ocean City Boardwalk
By Donald Wittkowski, OCNJDAILY
The 1962 Pontiac Catalina has apparently been the ultimate good luck charm for Steven and Eileen Edling during their marriage.
The Lansdale, Pa., couple drove the sapphire blue convertible during their wedding in 1984. They will be getting behind the wheel again on Sept. 14 to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary, Eileen Edling said.
The car’s head-turning beauty usually elicits thumbs-up signs and waves from other drivers when the Edlings have it on the road.
And there were plenty of admirers Saturday when the Catalina was parked on the Boardwalk among more than 120 cars and trucks on display during the 49th annual Ocean City Classic Car and Street Rod Show.
The vintage cars and trucks from the 1920s up to the early 1990s stretched along the Boardwalk from Fifth Street to 11th Street. The very last car in line was the Edlings’ Catalina.
“I showed up late,” Steven Edling explained, laughing, of why he was bringing up the rear.
Now in pristine condition and sporting an extravagant blue-and-white interior, the Catalina wasn’t in the best shape when he found it in a barn in Evansburg, Pa., and paid $2,500 to buy it.
Since then, Steven has spent countless hours fixing and restoring the convertible as “a labor of love,” Eileen said.
“He drives it most of the time,” Eileen said, while noting that she prefers to ride in style as the passenger.
With Bluetooth radio, the couple drives around listening to Beatles and Frank Sinatra songs dating to the Catalina’s 1960s origin.
Wanting to share the joy of having the Catalina with others, the Edlings allowed children and car buffs to climb into the convertible to have their photos taken during the show.
Classic cars line up on the Boardwalk between Fifth and 11th streets.
Now celebrating its 49th anniversary, the Classic Car and Street Rod Show is even older than many of the vintage cars and trucks that give it its old-school glamour.
Jamie Longmuir, who heads Blinker Fluid Productions, the company that owns and promotes the car show, believes that the show’s success and longevity can be attributed to its location.
“It’s the Boardwalk – 100 percent. Any show that we hold up here, everybody wants to be on the Boardwalk. That’s the key. There’s something special about driving your car on the Boardwalk,” said Longmuir, an Ocean City resident.
Longmuir’s company also produces other car shows held on the Ocean City Boardwalk each year, including the popular autumn Jeep Invasion coming up on Sept. 21.
The quality of the cars and trucks in the Classic Car and Street Rod Show was extraordinary, making it difficult for the judges to pick the top 25 award winners and Best of Show, Longmuir pointed out.
“My judges are pulling their hair out right now because we can’t pick 25 top cars. The quality is so high,” he said.
Car buff Barry Clark marvels over a 1970 Dodge Charger SE.
Although he wasn’t a judge, Barry Clark of Linwood was marveling over a 1970 Dodge Charger 500 SE decked out in a “crazy purple metallic” color scheme that gleamed in the sunlight.
“It’s American. All American,” Clark said admiringly of the Challenger’s U.S. pedigree.
As much as he loved the Charger and its powerful engine, Clark said he probably wouldn’t want to own the car. And with good reason.
He suspects he would probably drive the car at high speeds and end up getting a bunch of speeding tickets.
“Yes, a lot of them,” he said, laughing.
A 1949 Chevrolet 3100 pickup truck draws some admiring looks.